This article discusses several philosophical aspects concerning power-system reliability. It puts the reliability aspects in perspective, describes a hierarchical framework of analysis and discusses how the economics of reliability should be compared.
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Magnetic materials form vital components in many types of equipment from motors to computer systems. The technology is far from static, and recent developments include microwave ferrites, magneto-optic recording and bubble memories
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The originality of Nikola Tesla has not always received true recognition in Britain. This short biography not only provides a description of the man but also emphasises the significance of his contributions to the development of electrical engineering.
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25 years of transistor development have seen semiconductors revolutionise the electronics industry and penetrate into a wide variety of industrial and leisure applications. As man continues to open up new frontiers, even more spectacular applications for the transistor become possible.
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The aim of the Joint European Torus (JET), now under construction near Abingdon, Oxfordshire, is to extend the study of magnetically-confined plasma to conditions similar to those needed in a power-producing fusion reactor. JET is much the largest single experiment in the European programme of nuclear-fusion research, and its design and construction have required a major effort of multinational co...
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For centuries earthquakes had been considered to be `acts of GodÂ¿, and hence beyond human control. But in recent years measurable warning signs have been observed which, if heeded, may allow precautionary or even preventive action to be taken
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As transmission voltages have increased it has become necessary to carry out fundamental research work on transformers outdoors with all the attedant problems of weatherproofing. New core and insulating materials point to the possibility of smaller and lighter transformers so that indoor installations can be used
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Most existing digital computers use the binary system of counting. However, a computer having a given number-handling capacity can be shown theoretically to require less equipment if its counting system is based on a radix of 3, i.e. on the ternary system. One of the problems involved, which the author considers, is that of obtaining circuits having three stable states.
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The success or failure of many current Earth-satellite and space-exploration programmes is highly dependent on the performance of precision Zener diodes. Military and industrial users of these subminiature semiconductor devices are inheriting the benefits of the necessary applied technology.
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CAD has to date been most successfully applied in the electronics industry. This case history of the implementation of a comprehensive CAD/CAM system shows that microelectronics techniques can and must be applied to the more traditional mechanical engineering industries
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The evolution of direct satellite broadcasting, higher-definition television systems, cable distribution and associated information systems is governed by both technical and economic considerations. This article shows how some of these developments interact and indicates the effect on TV receiver technology
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When most people think of archaeology they picture an excavation or 'dig'. Despite its somewhat 'arty' image, archaeology is, in many areas, a very intricate science ߝ especially with regard to the dating of artefacts, animal, plant and human remains
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A revolution is in the offing for telephony. Over the next 20 years, the public switched telephone network will be integrated with specialist data-transmission networks to create a common universal network for speech and data Â¿ the ISDN
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Production of integrated circuits to military and high-reliability specifications cannot be learned overnight. Special attention must be given to semiconductor processes and circuit design techniques, and it can take years to develop such a capability
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Electroheating by magnetically inducing high-power currents into metal has been an accepted industrial process for over half a century. During the last decade, rapid development in high-current solid-state devices has resulted in the gradual replacement of the motor generator by frequency converters for the generation of medium-frequency power (300 Hz to 10 kHz). Power at these frequencies is norm...
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If there is, indeed, a shortage of pubilo-sector finance for education and training, then the onus must fall on the private sector. But this need not just be a financial drain and can offer a range of benefits to companies involved
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In its simplest form, any system to detect the growth of fires automatically can save lives and property by allowing early remedial action. But the elimination of the false alarms that can erode confidence in any system is an important consideration, and a great deal of work has gone into improving the integrity of modern systems
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The prospects for the satellite earth station that can be carried in the briefcase Â¿ or even in the pocketÂ¿ depend very strongly on the processing power of the satellite. A new generation of satellites is emerging which could make the `personal earth stationÂ¿ a reality
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It is less than a decade since the first logic analysers were introduced, and many design engineers, particularly in companies operating on the fringes of microprocessor development, are still left asking basic questions of these new instruments.
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SF6 outdoor circuit breakers of type ELF for voltages from 72.5 to 420 kV have been in service for a number of years in numerous countries. This article reports on the extension of this range to rated voltages up to 800 kV, breaking currents up to 50 kA, the two-cycle interrupting time and on the facility for fitting closing resistors
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Over the last decade the variety and complexity of preinted-cirucit boards (PCBs) being designed has significantly increased. The requirements from the PCB board designer have increased in direct proportion, as have the requirements for any design aid
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The UK home market has not demanded in the past hydroelectric generators of the high rating necessitating direct water cooling. Without an opportunity to demonstrate an ability to produce such machines, there is difficulty in breaking into the world market for capital electrical goods of this type
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Emergency power, apart from being a legal requirement in public places, is increasingly critical in modern production processes where the cost of interruption can include danger to life and damaged plant. The reliability of batteries chosen for starting standby generator sets and for uninterruptible power supply (u.p.s.) systems is paramount if panic is to be avoided when the lights go out
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Control of stepper motors is facilitated by supplying each motor with its own microprocessor, linked in a slave/master relationship to the main computer. But distributed processing puts specialised demands on both hardware and software. What are these demands, and how can they be met in a practical situation?
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Sulphur hexafluoride is well established as an arc-interrupting medium and will be extensively used for switchgear in the future. There is scope for more research and development, and SF6 circuit breakers now in service are providing a good basis to work on
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Recently, the aircraft-equipment industry has seen striking improvements in the power/weight ratio of aircraft a.c. generators. A compact package termed the integrated drive generator has emerged, which elegantly harnesses to the best effect the advantages of the direct liquid-cooled a.c. generator.
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The construction of the Victoria line has been the largest single piece of engineering ever to be undertaken in London. When the line was opened, it was the most advanced passenger railway anywhere in the world, and uses important new concepts of automatic driving, fare collection and train control. However, the line was not completed until 16 years after its conception - an indication of the fore...
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The COMPAC cable, 9400 statute miles long, was officially opened by the recorded voice of HM The Queen on the 2nd December 1963. The cable forms the second leg in a 'round-the-world' cable system, the next section of which (SEACOM) should be completed early in 1966.
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Most existing types of reluctance machine, although cheap and reliable, have poor outputs and power factors. The authors have developed a new form of reluctance machine which has a much improved performance.
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More than a scientific curiosity, supporting metal by electromagnetic fields has considerable practical interest. The metal can even be in the molten state, and it is quite possible to design furnaces in which the metal is not only melted, but also supported, by electricity.
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The idea of using linear motors for railway traction is not new, a patent having been filed nearly 60 years ago. However, the limitations imposed by centrifugal forces in conventional electric motors when rotating at high speed have led to a reconsideration of linear motors for traction, as they offer the advantage of having no moving parts and their efficiency increases with speed.
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In order to accommodate the maximum telephonic traffic on busy trunk routes and submarine cables, special methods of speech compression are used. These call for a detailed knowledge of the statistical properties of speech if the most economical results are to be obtained without undue deterioration of quality.
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With the use of modern electronic devices, the heart beats or brain waves of a patient can be recorded during his normal daily activities, which is a great advantage in diagnosing disease. This is the last article written by the late Prof. R. Woolmer.
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Increased interest in accelerometers has been one of the by-products of inertial-guidance studies. This survey of the accelerometer field sketches the basic theory on which the instruments are based, and explains the different categories into which they are divided.
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Planning engineers are seeking to control the domestic demand for electricity in such a way that the creation of peak conditions, calling for massive reinforcement of generating plant, can be avoided.
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The term 'pumped storage' gives no clue to the uninitiated that such a project is basically a hydroelectric scheme. This may explain why pumped storage does not seem to arouse the same strong feelings as are customarily reserved for straight hydroelectric schemes. Nevertheless, pumped storage is a form of hydroelectric development that, by avoiding total dependence on nature, is characterised by t...
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Circles are often used to represent elementary particles, but are we always conscious of the ambiguity implied by using the symbol accepted for a solid sphere also as that for the indeterminate boundary of an electron or nucleon?
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Given adequate design and development facilities, the reluctance machine could prove superior, in some respects, to the induction motor and would certainly be capable of fulfilling a wide variety of increasingly important functions more successfully and more cheaply than any other device.
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The 12th Graham Clark Lecture of the Institutions of Civil, Mechanical and Electrical Engineers was given on the 24th March 1966 in the lecture theatre of the Institution of Electrical Engineers, Savoy Place, London WC2.
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It is usually assumed that small-scale electricity supplies for village communities in tropical undeveloped countries must necessarily be uneconomic. Experience in Sabah (North Borneo) with unattended local diesel generation suggests that this assumption may no longer be valid.
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The field over an open-sided linear motor contains a rotating component which can be used to spin rotors In a manner that is analogous to a rack-and-pinion action. If the rotor is made up of a stack of washersÂ¿a divided-cylinder rotorÂ¿some Interesting effects can be obtained.
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